Five ways to boost self-esteem

“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid” – Albert Einstein.

Self-esteem is a positive or negative orientation toward oneself; an overall evaluation of one’s worth or value. Self-esteem is how we value ourselves; it is how we perceive our value to the world and how valuable we think we are to others. Self-esteem affects our trust in others, our relationships, and our work – nearly every part of our lives.

Self-esteem is how we as individuals value ourselves, it is our confidence, our belief in self and the totality of the individual’s thoughts and feelings with reference to himself as an object.

Simply put, self-esteem is accepting, loving and appreciating yourself with your flaws. No individual is perfect, there is no individual who hasn’t made mistakes or hasn’t faltered or broken down in certain situations in the journey called life. Self-esteem isn’t an ability or talent that you are born with, it is something that you build within yourself as you continue to tackle the good and bad circumstances of life.

Self-esteem can be positive or negative. Having positive self-esteem is considered to be ideal. Low self-esteem or too much self-esteem can pose as a threat to not only your personal and professional relationships but all aspects of your life. People with low self-esteem are of the opinion that they are no good, they are worthless, they can never do anything wrong, they are unlovable and that they don’t deserve anything.

Believe, trust and love yourself

Nobody can help you better than you, it is understandable that when things don’t go right we tend to blame ourselves, things we could have done differently, and things we could have done better. This kind of thinking will not help you, it will only make you feel bad about yourself. What you need to do is believe in yourself, in your abilities and your efforts. It is only when you learn to love and trust yourself is when you will instill that sense of confidence within yourself. Every opportunity or situation whether good or bad, successful or unsuccessful is a learning experience. It is our choice to learn from it and reap the lessons or cry over it without ever trying to find s solution.

Avoid negative self-talk

When an individual’s self-esteem is low, they tend to blame themselves for anything that may go wrong and this negative self-talk further diminishes their confidence and self-esteem. A way to work on building your self-esteem is to train yourself to avoid indulging in such negative self-talk.

Remind yourself of your positive traits

Focusing on those aspects that you don’t find to be good in yourself is not going to help you build your self-esteem in any way. Appreciate yourself for who you are, accept your flaws and the unique and beautiful being that you are. Remind yourself of the little things that make you, you and the tiniest details that set you apart from others. Focus on the things that you like about yourself and remind yourself of these things when you feel that your confidence is down.

A positive mind is a healthy mind

Adapting to a positive way of thinking will help you maintain a positive self-esteem. If you tend to fixate on the negative aspects and outlook it will just aid in lowering your self-esteem further. Do the things that make you feel good. Sleep well, eat well, exercise and rejuvenate yourself in any way you deem fit. A positive mind will lead to a healthy mind, body and soul.

Your loved ones are your best allies

The people you love and who love you know you the best. Spending time with the people you love will help you feel good about yourself as you will be treated and respected as you would be expect yourself to be treated. Having people who support you and love you will help you see the good in yourself and will help you tackle those negative thoughts and in turn aid in building your self-esteem.

“If you don’t see your worth, you’ll always choose people who don’t see it either. When your self-esteem rises, your life follows” – Mandy Hale.

Author

Dr Mohit Shah is a consultant psychiatrist at Unlimited Potentialities (a comprehensive mental health care clinic having three branches in Mumbai).
He is the winner of the Young Scholar Award in Psychiatry in 2009. Contested between more than 200 post-graduate students of Psychiatry on a national platform, Dr. Shah bagged the first prize in the West Zone and second position at an all India level. His areas of interest include depression, anxiety, relationship problems in adolescents and adults.

Dr Mohit Shah is a consultant psychiatrist at Unlimited Potentialities (a comprehensive mental health care clinic having three branches in Mumbai).
He is t. . .

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Author

Dr Mohit Shah is a consultant psychiatrist at Unlimited Potentialities (a comprehensive mental health care clinic having three branches in Mumbai).
He is the winner of the Young Scholar Award in Psychiatry in 2009. Contested between more than 200 post-graduate students of Psychiatry on a national platform, Dr. Shah bagged the first prize in the West Zone and second position at an all India level. His areas of interest include depression, anxiety, relationship problems in adolescents and adults.

Dr Mohit Shah is a consultant psychiatrist at Unlimited Potentialities (a comprehensive mental health care clinic having three branches in Mumbai).
He is t. . .